Lessons on the Plan of Salvation
Lesson No. Twenty-Two
The Doctrine of the Fall as Taught by Lehi in the Book of Mormon
The best scriptural sermon on the fall is found in 2 Nephi 2 – This sermon teaches the relationship between the creation, the fall, and the atonement. The following is a verse by verse commentary. Please follow along in your personal copy of the Book of Mormon.
- Overcoming adversity is necessary for growth, and is part of the plan – Vs 1-2
- The atonement of Christ puts the plan of salvation into operation – Vs 3-4
- All men are born with a conscience whereby we know good from evil. No one, save Jesus only, is without sin. Sin separates us from God and makes us miserable – Vs 5
- Salvation is in Christ. He can atone for sin on the condition of repentance – Vs 6-7
- We can return to the presence of God only through the atonement of Christ – Vs 8-9
- Because of the atonement of Christ all men will be resurrected and judged justly – Vs 10
- The “opposition in all things” refers to the opposition of the flesh. In our pre-earth existence we had agency therefore there must have been opposition. But our spirits can only experience the full spectrum of opposition when we have a body. A compound is two or more things put together. With a body and a spirit we are a “compound in one” – Vs 11
- There is an important relationship between the creation and the fall. The fall resulted in a mortal probation, otherwise there would have been no purpose in the creation – Vs 12
- Agency and accountability are essential to the plan of salvation – Vs 13
- Our spirit has agency; our body is the instruments of that agency – Vs 14
- Our agency makes us susceptible to the enticements of the devil – Vs 16-18
- The fall brought procreation and a condition where we experience sin. We are given sufficient time to repent. If no fall we could not do good and experience joy – Vs 19-25
- The atonement of Christ redeems us from the fall, guarantees our agency, and makes us free to choose good or evil. The atonement also insures the law of consequences in that we will be held accountable for our choices – Vs 26
- We are free to choose good, the consequence of which is liberty and eternal life. Or we can choose evil, the consequence of which is captivity, death, and misery – Vs 27
- The Holy Spirit entices us to choose good. He comes to us in a still small voice – Vs 28
- The devil screams at us through the appetites of the flesh. If we give into these appetites it gives the devil power to captivate us and make us miserable – Vs 29
- Lehi’s purpose, like mine, is to teach his children the plan of salvation – Vs 30
It is a fall forward – All things were created so that mankind, beginning with Adam and Eve can exercise their agency and grow toward eternal life. Because of the fall we receive a mortal body (the flesh) which provides the greatest opposition and opportunity for our spirits to grow.
In this life there is a continual battle between the flesh and the spirit. If the spirit acts and the flesh is acted upon than we are choosing eternal life. If the appetites of the flesh dominate our spirit we become addicted and the devil rules over us and makes us miserable.
Because of the fall and the temptations of the devil all men sin, and therefore, deserve to be cut off from the presence of God. The fall allows us to marry, have children, and begin to experience another dimension of family life. The fall provides a probationary time so that we can repent and experience the joy of redemption and eternal life through the atonement of Christ.
The fall is an indispensable part of the plan of salvation, and because of atonement of Christ the fall is not a fall down, but it is a “fall” forward even upward in our quest for eternal life.